TUCSON, Ariz. – The Colorado State men’s golf team began play at the Mountain West Championship Friday on the Catalina Course at Omni Tucson National Resort, closing Day 1 of competition in a tie for sixth place behind strong opening rounds from the underclassmen duo of sophomore Dominic Kieffer and freshman Alec Bone.

"Alec and Dom had solid rounds without having their ‘A’ games today,” said head coach Christian Newton. “The forecast for tomorrow is supposed to be very windy so we will have an opportunity to move up with a good round. The guys are in a great frame of mind to play well tomorrow."

Kieffer, who played the course as a true freshman at the 2013 MW Championships and has competed in every round of the 2014 season for the Rams, shot a personal best on the course with an even-par 71 in Round 1. Kieffer’s round puts him in five-way tie for 11th place in the 55-player field, and continues an impressive stretch for the native of Byron, Minn., who is coming off of a career-best finish (12th) at last week’s El Macero Classic.

“Today was a test of patience; there weren't that many birdies out there because of the wind and the course set up,” said Kieffer. “I made sure my misses were in good spots to get up and down.”

He sits just one stroke outside of the top 5, and five strokes off the pace set by the tournament leader, UNLV’s Carl Johnson who carded an opening round of 66 to sit two strokes ahead of San Diego State’s Riccardo Michelini (68).

Bone, a true freshman, joins Kieffer in the top 20 individual standings heading into Saturday’s second round. A native of Phoenix, Ariz., he carded a 1-over 72, tying for the second-best round of his young career with the Rams in his sixth overall tournament of the season, and just his third in the Rams’ lineup. Bone also competed in three tournaments as an individual competitor.

Junior Cameron Harrell, who finished 21st at the 2012 MW Championships and tied for 19th in 2013, sits two strokes behind Bone in a tie for 30th. Harrell shot 3-over on the front nine, but bounced back with an even-par showing on the back nine to stay at 3-over for the day.

Parker Edens rounded out the scoring for the Rams in Round 1. The senior from Greeley, Colo., who finished tied for 24th at the event in 2012 and tied for 13th last season, carded three birdies on the day, but closed Friday’s first round with a double bogey 6 on No. 18 to card a 76 (+4) and sit in a tie for 39th.

Junior Patrick Winther also competed for the Rams but did not figure into the scoring in Round 1 with an 81 (+11) to sit in a tie for 51st.

As a team, the Rams carded a Round 1 score of 292 (+6), matching MW newcomer San Jose State, 13 strokes off the pace set by team tournament leader New Mexico (279). UNLV is one stroke behind the Lobos with a 4-under 280, followed closely by San Diego State which shot a 3-under 281. Air Force (287) and Wyoming (290) round out the top five just ahead of the Rams and Spartans. Boise State (293) is one stroke behind CSU and SJSU in eight place, while Nevada (296), Utah State (298) and Fresno State (307) finished ninth through 11th, respectively after 18 holes.

“All of us, as a team, grinded down the stretch without our ‘A’ games,” added Kieffer. “Tomorrow is supposed to be pretty windy and rainy so were preparing for the worst and getting ready for a great test of golf.”

Round 2 is slated to begin at 7 a.m. PT/8 a.m. MT tomorrow morning with tee times set at 10-minute intervals off of Hole 1. The Rams, paired with Air Force and Wyoming, will tee off beginning at 8:40 a.m. PT/9:40 a.m. MT.